Scindia marvels at Meghalaya’s living root bridges, calls them symbol of nature’s harmony

Pynursla: Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Saturday expressed awe at Meghalaya’s famed living root bridges, describing them as a “vision of the past” and a symbol of harmony between humans and nature that must be treasured and protected.Scindia visited one of the tallest living root bridges at Rangthylliang village in East Khasi Hills district, where he interacted with the locals and community elders, who have preserved the centuries-old natural marvels. Scindia and environmentalist Morningstar Khongthaw, along with others, spent some time on these towering living bridges, standing hundreds of feet above the forest floor below.“When you come here, you are transported to a vision of the past, the beauty and tranquility of Mother Nature, her creativity as she wraps her arms around the earth and provides a pathway for us mere mortals to meet and connect,” Scindia said in a video he posted on his social media handle on Sunday.“The natural beauty of Mother Nature, her enveloping warmth, is something we, as humans, as Indians and as the people of Meghalaya must always treasure and worship because she is our protector and provider,” Scindia said.Calling his visit “an enthralling experience”, the minister said he was humbled to be “in touch with the soil of Meghalaya and the roots that have given birth to generations of natural-born people.”

Scindia also praised the contributions of the Living Roots Foundation, led by Morningstar Khongthaw, whose work focuses on preserving, protecting, and passing on traditional knowledge of root-bridge making to future generations of tribal communities living along the southern slopes of the Khasi Hills.Khongthaw, who interacted with Scindia during the visit, said, “I am delighted to have got the opportunity to interact closely with the Union Minister for DoNER. I urged the Centre, through the minister, to highlight these living engineering marvels of Meghalaya. We need to preserve the bridges.”Earlier this year, Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had also visited a living root bridge in Sohra, praising the indigenous engineering and community-led efforts to conserve Meghalaya’s natural heritage. PTI